Adolf Hitler was born in the small Austrian town of Branau on the 20th of April 1889. He came from a middle-class family that lived comfortably, although he suggested in his book Mein Kampf that his family was poor and his childhood was filled with hardship. His father Alois Hitler was a customs official with the Austrian Civil Service. His mother, Klara was a former servant girl and became Alois' third wife. The young Hitler had ability but performed poorly at school. He reacted against discipline. One of his teachers described Hitler as "wilful, arrogant and bad tempered. He had obvious difficulty in fitting in at school. Moreover he was lazy.... He demanded of his fellow pupils their unqualified subservience, fancying himself in the role of leader."…
